Obsession: A Rejected Mate Shifter Romance (The Mate Games #1)(64)

Kingston let out a frustrated groan. “Come on with it, witch. I have places to be that don’t involve you or your ragtag team of misfits. What is this all about?”

“Calm your teats, dog boy. We’re waiting on one . . .”

Thorne came through the clearing at the mouth of the path to my left, the rumpled state of his shirt and hair leaving little doubt about what he’d been doing before receiving Moira’s text. My jaw clenched, and I tore my gaze away from him, but not before I caught sight of the obvious hickey on his throat.

“Oh, good, he’s here.” Moira clapped her hands together. “Take a seat so we can get started.”

Thorne looked first to me and then to Kingston before his brows shot together. “What the bloody hell are you up to, Belladonna?”

“We need to have a talk about Sunday.”

Thorne’s posture stiffened. “She’s fine. I just left her, and I can assure you, all her needs are being met.”

The low growl that came from Kingston was matched only by my own involuntary snarl. Freya’s heaving bosoms, where had that come from?

“I said calm your fucking teats, wolf,” Moira said, pure venom in her voice. “This is exactly why we’re here. The three of you.”

“What about us?” I asked.

“I’m sure at least one of you is going to try to deny it, but it goes without saying that all of you are drawn to my roomie.”

“I’m not part of this.” Even as I said it, the argument fell flat.

Moira rolled her eyes. “Thanks for proving my point, Viking. But yes, you are. All of you are. And after what happened the other night, it’s pretty obvious to me that Sunday is going to need all three of you if she has any chance of staying safe.”

Alarm shot through my chest, leaving me cold and on edge. “What about the other night? What haven’t you told me?”

Moira’s eyes flared, anger making them glitter like jewels. “We were taken by hunters.”

“What?” Kingston snarled, his body trembling, eyes glowing deep amber as he and his wolf battled for control.

Wrath unlike anything I’d felt before uncoiled in my chest, something untamed and feral rattling through me. “Where?” I demanded.

Moira fought against a smile. “Easy, tiger. Sunday and I took care of it. Mostly Sunday, but you don’t need to worry about running off and ripping heads from bodies. I just meant that they’ve come after her twice now. Clearly these guys are after something, and I think all of us would feel a lot better if we knew she wasn’t going to find herself in a situation where she had to deal with them on her own.”

“And so you summoned all of us here and left her on her own?” Kingston’s voice was an inhuman growl.

Moira narrowed her eyes at the shifter. “I hoped she’d remain safe while on campus, but after today, if you idiots follow the plan, we won’t need to worry about that again.”

Thorne crossed his arms over his chest. “I can protect her.”

“Can you? You did a bang-up job of it the other night. Real hero stuff there, buddy.”

I rounded on him. “You were there and let her get taken? What the hell is wrong with you?”

“The bastards used silver. They came out of nowhere.”

“So what’s to keep them from doing it again? Clearly you can’t be trusted with her safety on your own,” I snapped, fury still surging through my veins.

“Oh, and you think you can, is that it?”

“I sure as shit wouldn’t be taken out by a bit of fucking metal. If that’s what you’re asking.”

Kingston took a step toward me. “It’s my job to keep her safe. If she’d just accept the truth and let me claim her, she wouldn’t be out roaming the streets with a leech.”

“Silver would stop you just as easily,” I pointed out. “I’m the only one here unaffected.”

“And you think you can stay with her twenty-four hours a day? I bet you’d love that. Having her all to yourself so you could convince her to finally give you the time of day.” Kingston’s words hit home, and rage boiled in my blood.

“Just give it a break, you three,” Moira said, holding her hands out. “We get it. You all have massively big tree trunk dicks. No one cares. We aren’t impressed. This is about Sunday and her wellbeing. I thought you could all be grown-ups long enough to admit she would be safer if all of us work together. But if I was wrong about you—”

“Enough, h?xa. You’ve made your point.” She startled, her eyes going wide as the words she’d been about to say died on her tongue at my harsh tone.

“You’re proposing we all care for her?” Thorne asked, his question hesitant. “She’s my mate.”

“Mine,” Kingston growled. “She. Is. Mine.”

Another ripple of possessive anger rose in my chest, and I had to fight to keep myself from biting out mine as well. My hands balled into tight fists, clenching so hard my knuckles cracked.

Moira smirked at us. “It’s hardly unheard of for a strong woman to have multiple protectors and/or lovers. The fae have been working together successfully for ages. I’m sure you can figure it out.”

“Multiple lovers?” I asked.

“Absolutely not.” Kingston stared at me, the promise of pain in his eyes if I so much as touched her.